Get to Know AFL-CIO’s Affiliates: Writers Guild of America East
This is the next post in our series that will take a deeper look at each of our affiliates. The series will run weekly until we’ve covered all 65 of our affiliates. Next up is the Writers Guild of America East (WGAE).
Name of Union: Writers Guild of America East
Mission: To negotiate and administer contracts that protect the creative and economic rights of its members; conduct programs, seminars and events on issues of interest to writers; and present writers’ views to various bodies of government.
Current Leadership of Union: Tom Fontana serves as president. He has written and produced such groundbreaking television series as “St. Elsewhere,” “Homicide: Life on the Street,” “Oz” and Netflix’s “Borgia.” Fontana wrote the HBO film “Strip Search,” directed by Sidney Lumet, as well as contributed two pieces to the September 11 special “America: A Tribute to Heroes.” He was an executive producer and co-creator of the AMC/Canal+ series “Monsieur Spade.” He wrote, directed and produced “Sugarland” on Audible. He has received, among others, three Emmy Awards, four Peabody Awards, three Writers Guild Awards, four Television Critics Association Awards, the Cable Ace Award, the Humanitas Prize, two Edgar Awards and the first prize at Geneva’s Cinéma Tout Écran Festival. From the Writers Guild of America East, he has received the Evelyn F. Burkey Award, the Richard B. Jablow Award and the Ian McLellan Hunter Award for Lifetime Achievement.
Michael Rauch serves as vice president of film/television/streaming, Jessica Schulberg serves as vice president of online media, Beth Godvik serves as vice president of broadcast/cable/streaming news, and Sasha Stewart serves as secretary treasurer.
Current Number of Members: 7,000+
Members Work As: Writers and media professionals.
Industries Represented: Film, television, news, podcasts and online media.
History: The Writers Guild of America East was founded in 1954, but the path to the Writers Guild is a long one that runs alongside the histories of both the entertainment industry and the labor movement. Since 1954, the Writers Guild of America East and Writers Guild of America West have negotiated and administered Minimum Basic Agreements with major film producers and networks and stations, covering theatrical and television films, broadcast and cable television, documentary film and radio, and public and commercial television. The Writers Guild of America East has a long history of advocating for the rights of writers and creative professionals from new and developing media industries.
Current Campaigns/Community Efforts: The WGAE is actively organizing media workers and engaged in contract campaigns at shops such as MS Now. It is also working on state legislation that would mandate disclaimers on news stories that are wholly created by artificial intelligence and on a federal film incentive to help bring film and television production back to the United States. The WGAE website is filled with resources for writers and union members, including access to current contracts and information about writers’ rights. WGAE keeps a Strike/Unfair List for various productions. WGAE supplies a list of agents who have signed the 2019 Agency Code of Conduct with the Guild, as well as franchise agencies. The Guild has an Activist Group. WGAE offers fellowships, annual awards, a Staff Writer Bootcamp and script registration. WGAE has salons such as the Asian American Writers Salon, the Black Writers Salon, the Jewish Writers Salon, the Latine Salon, the LGBTQ+ Writers Salon and the Women’s Salon that work to build community, amplify the voices of underrepresented writers, provide practical career-building skills, celebrate the successes of peers and more. WGAE offers caucuses as a professional forum open to both current Guild members and established writers who are pursuing Guild membership but whose produced screenplays and projects do not meet the criteria for membership under the Minimum Basic Agreement. Caucuses include the Indie Film Caucus, the Documentary Caucus, the Animation Caucus and the Nonfiction Women of Color Caucus. The WGA Audio Alliance organizes the writers of scripted podcasts. WGAE produces the nonfiction podcast for OnWriting that features members sharing career advice and discussing current projects. The Writers Guild Initiative brings the craft of writing to communities whose voices and stories are underrepresented in the popular discourse.